fire alarm
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fire alarm
An acoustic or visual signal that warns of a fire and prompts people to evacuate a building. It is triggered manually by a fire alarm call point or automatically by smoke detectors.
Als der Feueralarm losging, verließen alle ruhig und geordnet das Gebäude.
When the fire alarm went off, everyone left the building calmly and in an orderly manner.
The word is a simple compound of 'das Feuer' (fire) and 'der Alarm' (alarm). So it literally means an alarm for the case of a fire.
Ein lauter Ton signalisierte den Feueralarm.
A loud sound signaled the fire alarm.
To express that a fire alarm starts, German usually uses the verb 'losgehen' (to go off). If someone activates the alarm, you say it is 'ausgelöst' (triggered).
Mitten in der Nacht ging plötzlich der Feueralarm los.
In the middle of the night, the fire alarm suddenly went off.
A very common and important combination is 'falscher Feueralarm' (false fire alarm). This describes a situation in which the alarm is activated even though there is no fire.
Zum Glück war es nur ein falscher Feueralarm.
Luckily, it was only a false fire alarm.
alarm
'der Alarm' and 'der Feueralarm' both refer to a warning signal in a dangerous situation. 'Alarm' is more general: it can warn of different dangers, for example a break-in, an accident, or smoke. 'Feueralarm' is more specific and means only an alarm because of a fire or suspected fire. Learners can confuse the words because a 'Feueralarm' is also an 'Alarm'. When it is clearly about fire or evacuating a building, 'Feueralarm' fits better. When the danger is not named exactly or is general, you use 'Alarm'.
Wegen des Feueralarms mussten wir das Büro sofort verlassen.
Because of the fire alarm, we had to leave the office immediately.
Nachts ging plötzlich der Alarm im Laden los.
At night, the alarm in the shop suddenly went off.